Bill Guerin traded to Pittsburgh Penguins for conditional pick

by FrankD on Mar 4, 2009 2:19 PM EST in News Comment 60 comments

Bill Guerin

New York Islanders

Height: 6-2

Weight: 220

Born: Nov 09, 1970

	G	A	P	+/-	PIM
2008 - Bill Guerin	16	20	36	-15	63

Lighthouse Hockey looks back on Guerin's days on the island.

The Penguins worked out a trade with the New York Islanders today to bring NHL veteran winger Bill Guerin to Pitt in exchange for a conditional pick. (Fifth round pick if the Pens don't make the playoffs, fourth round if they do, third round pick if they go past the first round). Needless to say, Islanders fans may be on the Pittsburgh bandwagon for that fact alone.

Just because he's not the best player in your fantasy pool doesn't mean Guerin will be a dud in Pittsburgh. Admittedly I was a bit disappointed at first when I heard the Pens traded for him, but when I saw what they gave up there's no way they lose in this deal.

The guy's obviously chock full of experience and grit. Makes you wonder where Dan Bylsma is going to fit him into the equation. A lot of speculation would lead you to believe he'll fill in as Sidney Crosby's winger. However I wouldn't be surprised if he took a second line role with Malkin/Sykora or on the third with Staal/Kunitz (less likely).

All season long we've talked about Pitt's lack of veteran leadership in the locker room. Now they have it just in time for a serious playoff push, and a serious one at that.

Pittsburgh is his eighth city in 17 seasons.

What do you think of the move?

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Burnside (2:20 p.m. ET): Interesting Bill Guerin is once again on the move at the trade deadline. And there’s no doubt he brings an interesting skill set to the table with his playoff experience (he’s played 105 postseason contests and won a Cup with New Jersey way back in 1995) to a Pittsburgh team that is suddenly looking very playoff-ready. A word of warning, however. The last time Guerin, who is now playing for his eighth NHL team, moved at the trade deadline, it didn’t exactly work out. Back in 2007, San Jose GM gave up a ton for Guerin — Ville Nieminen, prospect Jay Barriball and a first-round draft pick, and Guerin failed to score in nine postseason games before he was injured during the second round

http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/news/story?id=3950511

by JDMaker1 on Mar 4, 2009 2:27 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

At the expense of a conditional pick, it’s a gamble worth taking in my book.

Follow the Penguins on SBN @ Pensburgh.com

by FrankD on Mar 4, 2009 2:30 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

I agree.

by JDMaker1 on Mar 4, 2009 2:30 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

i like it actually

It’s never a bad trade when you can meet a critical need without giving up much of anything. In this case, the Pens are getting a gritty, physical veteran winger who can chip in a few goals and lead in the locker room the way Gary Roberts did last season, and they’re giving up (at worst) a 3rd-rounder.

Also worth noting is that Guerin came up to the NHL through the Devils system under Lemaire. So not only are we adding a veteran leader, we’re adding one who developed his game in a very fundamentally sound system. There’s leading, and there’s leading by example: expect Guerin to do lots of the little things right.

P is for Latrobe.

by holiday park on Mar 4, 2009 2:31 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

Shero hasn’t made any “Hoassa” like trades (yet), but he has made some pretty good ones to increase overall depth.

by JDMaker1 on Mar 4, 2009 2:33 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Also remember that Guerin scored 36 goals in 06-07 (the year he went to San Jose).

I think it’s a good trade for the Pens. Guerin has a lot more to offer on the ice and in the room than a guy like Satan.

by Hooks Orpik on Mar 4, 2009 2:33 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

Amen to that. Guerin brings a lot more than Satan could ever in the playoffs.

by MalkinMilitia on Mar 4, 2009 2:35 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Yeah, he’s more Kunitz like (or vice versa since Guerin is the elder). The Pens need a couple guys who aren’t afraid to get ugly goals.

by JDMaker1 on Mar 4, 2009 2:35 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

And Billy G can still score some pretty ones I might add. For an “old” guy he’s held up very well.

by JDMaker1 on Mar 4, 2009 2:36 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

He certainly can. Guerin is an older power forward, in a sense, will help with ugly goals.

by MalkinMilitia on Mar 4, 2009 2:38 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Yeah I saw him play a couple games in person, in one he picked off the top corner with that wicked wrist shot.

by Hooks Orpik on Mar 4, 2009 2:38 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

I hate to be the guy that bores a blog but I agree with all of you. Guerin for a 3rd rounder at worst is that Gary-Roberts-like move that may not seem like much but can pay huge dividens down the road.

The questions are where does he play? Is there another move coming? Where is Crosby’s winger? Is Gogo coming back? He have about 25 minutes to find out? What about Satan?

Life is about one simple choice, get busy living or get busy dying

by Dr Tre on Mar 4, 2009 2:38 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

Dr Tre, I think your outlook is pretty measured. This isn’t a 28 year old Bill Guerin, it’s a 38 year old player definitely towards the end of his playing days..

I still think it’s a good move (given that the Pens have two 3rd round picks) and could be a great one if Guerin has a little still in the tank.

But you’re right to suggest Guerin’s not going to be the biggest impact player in 2009.

by Hooks Orpik on Mar 4, 2009 2:40 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Not close to the biggest impact player. But he’s not your average 38 year old NHL player either. Gaborik will be in a wheel chair by the time he is 38, but somehow Billy just keeps on keeping on.

by JDMaker1 on Mar 4, 2009 2:43 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Melrose is loving the Bill Guerin deal. He believes he will add a lot of experience to the Penguins’ lineup.

by PensRock1 on Mar 4, 2009 2:38 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

Isn’t he coaching somewhere this season? Oh right . . .

by JDMaker1 on Mar 4, 2009 2:39 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Not to be a douche but who the hell cares what Melrose thinks! The average Pens fan has forgotten more about hockey than he knows.

Life is about one simple choice, get busy living or get busy dying

by Dr Tre on Mar 4, 2009 2:56 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

the big question is… Is Shero done for the day? or will he pull a big trade? maybe staal??

by PensRock1 on Mar 4, 2009 2:41 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

hard to see Staal moving with his recent play and chemistry with Kunitz.

by MalkinMilitia on Mar 4, 2009 2:42 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

yeah but you think kunitz will stay on his line when sid returns? cu i think he will move to that line

by PensRock1 on Mar 4, 2009 2:43 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

Hard to argue with 5 pts in 3 games. You can’t fix what isn’t broken.

by JDMaker1 on Mar 4, 2009 2:43 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

I almost hope they don’t mess with that line to be honest with you. Maybe experiment with it on the PP or something but if it aint broke….

Follow the Penguins on SBN @ Pensburgh.com

by FrankD on Mar 4, 2009 2:44 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

I agree, Staal and Kunitz are lighting up the scoreboard, no need to mix up a good thing, certainly at this point in the season.

by MalkinMilitia on Mar 4, 2009 2:45 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Maybe find a way to get Stall, Kunitz, and Crosby on the same line?

Life is about one simple choice, get busy living or get busy dying

by Dr Tre on Mar 4, 2009 2:58 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

agreed.

by PensFan024 on Mar 4, 2009 3:00 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

that's what I'm saying...

by Rougue_Behaviorist on Mar 4, 2009 3:07 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Hate to change the subject, but

did any of you notice AO got “injured” in practice? I hadn’t heard that, I must be living in a bubble.

http://www.nhl.com/ice/news.htm?id=412193

by JDMaker1 on Mar 4, 2009 2:45 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

Report said it was nothing serious, Pens fans can only hope it is serious.

by MalkinMilitia on Mar 4, 2009 2:47 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Yeah “nothing serious” camr from the training staff though. Taking a slap shot off of the foot can do some damage, but I’d have to assume it didn’t do too much.

by JDMaker1 on Mar 4, 2009 2:49 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Indeed it can, but knowing Ovie, he will play no matter what, though a more serious injury could slow him down.

by MalkinMilitia on Mar 4, 2009 2:51 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

i hope we deal another defencemen, to make room for gogo

by PensRock1 on Mar 4, 2009 2:49 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

3rd round pick for a 38 year old? For that price, you better hope he plays a key role in a run to the conference finals at least…

by ahtrap on Mar 4, 2009 2:49 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

It’s only a third if they win the first round of the playoffs. Plus the Pens had an extra third round pick.

by PensFan024 on Mar 4, 2009 2:51 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

forgive me for assuming that the Pens are gonna get to the second round at least :)

didn’t know about the extra pick, though…whose pick was it, and which one is on the block?

by ahtrap on Mar 4, 2009 2:57 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

They picked one up from Tampa last year right before free agency started when they traded Malone and Roberts.

by PensFan024 on Mar 4, 2009 2:58 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

ahtrap, Tampa has to give Pittsburgh a 3rd for the last minute trading of Ryan Malone’s and Gary Roberts’ rights since Tampa signed both players.

by Hooks Orpik on Mar 4, 2009 2:58 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Yeah, and TSN did a study of draft picks and the players that make the NHL by the round they were drafted in….89% of first rounders go on to stick in the NHL and as you would imagine it continues to drop off.

In other words, a 3rd round NHL pick is not a surefire bet. Robert Botuzzo, Brian Strait, Nick Johnson and Brian Gifford are some recent Penguin 3rd rounders, guys that for the moment no one has heard of.

Sure, you can find a Kris Letang (the first pick of the 3rd round) every once in a while, but more often than there’s a reason guys drafted in round 3 weren’t taken in round 1 and 2.

by Hooks Orpik on Mar 4, 2009 2:57 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

I read that same article! Isn’t tsn.ca the best hockey webiste?

Life is about one simple choice, get busy living or get busy dying

by Dr Tre on Mar 4, 2009 2:59 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Oh, i agree, it’s starting to devolve into a crapshoot by the time you get to the third round….then again, being a Red Wings fan, I think of third round picks in terms of Nick Lidstrom, Chris Osgood, Johann Franzen…

by ahtrap on Mar 4, 2009 3:08 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

The Red Wings are a freak of the NHL who are exceptions….If everyone had their scouting/drafting/developing techniques the league would be a scary place.

by Hooks Orpik on Mar 4, 2009 3:16 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

went to wikipedia just now to look up Red Wings draftees…and yeah, they’ve definitely got some crazy good overseas scouts….

just for trivia’s sake, gotta point out that Peter Sykora was a third rounder, too, I’d totally forgotten that the Red Wings had drafted him initially….I don’t really remember him ever playing for Detroit though…

by ahtrap on Mar 4, 2009 3:48 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Sykora was drafted 18th overall by NJ. Perhaps another Sykora was drafted by Detroit.

by PensFan024 on Mar 4, 2009 3:51 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

apparently the Red Wings draftee was a Petr Sykora who played a couple games fro the preds in 1998, ten games for the Capitals back in 2005-06….couldn’t deal with the culture shock, apparently….

apologies on the misinformation, just saw the name on a list of draftees and didn’t actually click on the link to verify which petr sykora they were talking about…

by ahtrap on Mar 4, 2009 4:06 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

LeBrun (2:51 p.m. ET): We just confirmed the Coyoytes traded Daniel Carcillo to the Philadelphia Flyers in exchange for Scottie Upshall and a second-round draft pick. Great deal for Phoenix in my mind. Philly has cleared up some cap space with this deal. So will they get Derek Morris or Jay Bouwmeester? Just got a note from Panthers’ war room on Bouwmeester and they’re still debating their options.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/news/story?id=3950511

by JDMaker1 on Mar 4, 2009 2:54 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

philly also picks up an enforcer/goon type in the deal….Carcillo has crashed back to his usual ways after it almost appeared like he had some offensive touch last year….

by ahtrap on Mar 4, 2009 3:00 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Bill Guerin’s comments to TSN:

Guerin: "It was a pretty painful process… we thought we had a deal done a few days ago… I’ve been through trade deadlines before… I’m extremely excited to be going to Pittsburgh… a young talented team like that… they’re playing great… "

I wonder if Pittsburgh was the team involved in the talks all along or if they scooped in at the last moment….Anyone hear anything like that?

by Hooks Orpik on Mar 4, 2009 3:01 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

Here’s the link to that Guerin quote, btw.

by Hooks Orpik on Mar 4, 2009 3:03 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

Classy right to the end. Thanks for the memories Billy.

Islesblogger is a contributor to Lighthouse Hockey: SBN's New York Islanders blog who's lost the most man games to injury.

by Michael Schuerlein on Mar 4, 2009 3:23 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

So what do we think the lines will look like now?

I am kind of thinking:

Staal – Crosby – Kunitz
Sykora – Malkin – Guerin
Cooke – Talbot – Kennedy/Dupis
Goddard – ??? – Dupis/Kennedy

Clearly, the 4th line is a question mark -Who plays center? – but I kind of like the look of the first three lines.

by Rougue_Behaviorist on Mar 4, 2009 3:40 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

Too bad we lost Zygomanis for the season. I still think he was a great signing

by Rougue_Behaviorist on Mar 4, 2009 3:41 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

What happened to Tenks? Here’s mine

Kunitz – Crosby – Staal
Fedotenko – Malkin – Sykora
Cook – Talbot – Guerin
Dupuis – Thomas – Adams

by PensFan024 on Mar 4, 2009 3:49 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

We did not acquire Guerin to play on the 3rd line

Kunitz-Crosby-Guerin
Sykora-Malkin-Fedotenko
Dupuis-Staal-Cooke
Kennedy-Talbot-Goddard

WE ARE.......PENN STATE!

by Nick7 on Mar 4, 2009 3:53 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

I would argue that first liners don’t get traded for 5th round picks. Furthermore, I don’t think he can handle the minutes Crosby’s line will play.

by PensFan024 on Mar 4, 2009 3:56 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

right – I somehow forgot about ’tank

and Adams, but we’ve had him for, like five minutes and not the whole season.

(no Kennedy)

by Rougue_Behaviorist on Mar 4, 2009 4:11 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

How on earth did I forget Kennedy? This is too tough. I think I’ll let Bylsma do it.

by PensFan024 on Mar 4, 2009 4:18 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

yep, I guess that why he gets the big bucks

by Rougue_Behaviorist on Mar 4, 2009 4:20 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

And Cooke-Talbot-Dupuis was our best line against Tampa last night. I say play Guerin with Crosby to start, move him down in Fedotenko’s place next to Malkin and his old teammate Sykora if he doesn’t mesh well with Sid. Please keep Kunitz on a line with Staal; it’s a deadly combination right now.

P is for Latrobe.

by holiday park on Mar 4, 2009 10:17 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

I also can’t see Guerin going to the third line, but if we’re having this kinda of debate I can’t imagine what Byslma and Co. are going through.

Is it fair to say we have a little depth now?

Follow the Penguins on SBN @ Pensburgh.com

by FrankD on Mar 4, 2009 4:57 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

I still want a Kunitz jersey.

by raimman on Mar 4, 2009 5:18 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Good trade

I didn’t get an article that showed what the conditions were for… but I was surprised to see the highest it could be was a 3rd round pick and the lowest a 5th…

I like it! I’m not saying I wouldn’t have rather got a St. Louis or someone with more skill.. but Guerin can definitely help this team now and deep into the playoffs.

by Stros Bro on Mar 4, 2009 7:28 PM EST reply actions 0 recs